New York: Most Expensive Place for a Home Mortgage
Bankrate’s annual survey of home mortgage closing costs shows New York to be the most expensive state in which to get a home mortgage. Its average is $4,016. Houston, Texas came in second place, with an average of $3,975 on home mortgage fees. On third place is Buffalo, New York, with $3,845. Miami comes in next, with an average closing cost on home mortgages of $3,683.
On the other hand, North Carolina turned out to be the state with the least expensive closing costs on home mortgages. It has an average of $2,650. Last year, Indiana had the lowest home mortgage costs.
New York has been in the top spot for the last four years. This can be attributed to two reasons. First, the origination fees in this place are swollen by taxes that are directly levied by the state on the lending companies. This is then passed on to consumers. The second reason is that lawyers conduct custom closings in the state, resulting to a higher charge than in most states.
According to Mike Kratzer, president of FeeDisclosure.com, fees have continued to rise even if the housing market has seen a slump in the past three years. He further adds that appraisal fees have even gradually risen, since lending companies are now requiring appraisers to perform more thorough, and therefore more time-consuming work.
Lenders’ fees also contribute to the current trend in the home mortgage closing costs. Some lending companies consolidate fees, instead of charging separately for different services. This can be more than the actual cost incurred by a consumer, therefore increasing the cost that he has to pay for his home mortgage. On the other hand, some lending companies add fees for document-printing fees charged for itemizing the costs incurred by a person’s home mortgage.
As a consumer, make sure that you understand well, and even scrutinize the good faith estimate, or the GFE. This is an important document you have to ask from your lending company. Compare and question costs, so that you do not get double-billed for services.
At the end of the day, it all boils down to what exists in your state. The best you can do is to vote for governments that advocate the welfare of consumers. The best examples for good state governments that favor home mortgage closing costs are Florida, Texas and New Mexico.
